1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to baked goods containers and, more particularly, to a moisture preservation, baked goods container.
2. Description of the Related Art
Nearly everyone has fond memories of sitting down to eat home baked goods, like cookies and cakes. Today, however, in this busy world, it seems there is little time to bake home made cookies, cakes or bread. Thus, when time is found to create these special delicacies, it becomes especially important that the baker be able to preserve these desserts for extended periods of time, so that the baked goods can be eaten and enjoyed at a leisurely pace.
Whether the baked goods are made "from scratch" or purchased right from the baker's oven, preserving the items becomes a problem once they are brought home. Leaving the cookies or other delicacies out on a counter top inevitably results in quick dehydration of the baked goods, which is caused by the normally dry, low humidity conditions that exist in most homes and other buildings. The moisture in the baked goods is drawn out, over time, into the surrounding, dryer atmosphere, until a point of equilibrium is reached between the high humidity content of the baked goods and the lower humidity in the surrounding atmosphere. This moisture exchange results in dry, hard, uninviting baked goods.
Placing the items in the refrigerator or freezer does little to solve this problem, as low humidity can be a problem in either of these devices. Moreover, frozen baked goods lose some of their freshness when placed in a freezer.
Wrapping the cookies in plastic wrap or aluminum foil creates several problems. First, if the seal on the plastic wrap or aluminum foil is not air tight, moisture from the baked goods will evaporate out into the room, which renders these materials useless for moisture preservation. Also, these materials are costly and cumbersome to use, and over time, constitute a significant expenditure for the baker.
Thus, attempts have been made to provide a moisture preserving container for the baked goods to be stored in prior to being consumed. Each device attempts to take advantage of the physical laws of nature that state that the moisture content of materials is higher when the material has been in contact for a period of time with air of high humidity, and that the humidity of the air in contact with the solid material affects the amount of water absorbed by the solid material. Thus, by placing the materials in a high humidity environment, one can increase the amount of water retained by the material, or put another way, the equilibrium moisture content of the material can be raised to a sufficient volume so as to effectuate the preservation of the material, in this case, baked goods, in a soft, moist state sufficient for eating hours or days after initial baking.
It is this equilibrium moisture content that the prior art devices attempt to control. Some devices attempt to do this by placing water in with the baked goods. An example of this type of device is U.S. Pat. No. 2,219,959, issued in the name of Laidley. The '959 device utilizes a pulp type material to hold water that will help maintain humidity in the container.
Other devices utilize water encapsulating technology, in which aqueous liquids are encapsulated in capsules 10 to 4,000 microns in diameter that have a slow, apparently constant water vapor release rate. An example of this technology is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,801,011, issued in the name of Guehler et. al.
The problem with such technology is that it is expensive to produce and use. In addition, such complex moisture maintenance means are always subject to mechanical failure. Also, the capsules are fragile and subject to breakage. In summary, this is an expensive and unnecessarily technical and complicated solution to a simple problem.
Humidity maintenance technology is commonly used in humidors and other devices designed to maintain the humidity in cigars and cigarettes. Many times, a mechanical or chemical means is introduced within the package which serves a source of humidity. Such humidifying elements include an invert sugar solution, a glauber's salt solution, a semipermeable envelope containing sodium bicarbonate, a mixture of Glauber's salt and borax or the like. Examples of humidors include U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,579, issued in the name of Newman, U.S. Pat. No. 4,008,930, issued in the name of Swainson, U.S. Pat. No. 2,680,048, issued in the name of McDonald, and U.S. Design Pat. No. D293,608, issued in the name of Fitzgerald et. al.
In general, humidors such as the ones mentioned above suffer from one or more of the following problems. Such devices utilize water and a porous substance to hold the water, which creates several problems. Refilling the container is a hazard, as spilled water can ruin the contents of the container. Such devices are not configured to be used with baked goods, especially large amounts of baked goods. The porous material used to hold the water is prone to bacterial contamination over time, and as such, requires frequent replacement, at significant inconvenience and delay. Such devices are expensive to manufacture. Such devices utilize mechanical parts which can malfunction. Such devices do not sufficiently control the rate of moisture transfer from the water storage section to the items stored in the container, resulting in too much humidity or a lack thereof.
A very significant problem with such devices is that the technology used to provide humidity does not work successfully when applied to baked goods. The moisture needed to maintain tobacco is significantly different from that needed to maintain the softness of baked goods. As such, baked goods cannot be placed in with large amounts of water, in that the amount of water that the baked goods with absorb to reach their equilibrium moisture content is such that the baked goods will become soggy and uninviting to eat. Thus, a means must be found to provide only enough moisture to prevent drying out without creating a soggy baked good.
Some devices are used in conjunction with microwave ovens, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,432,324, issued in the name of Freewald and U.S. Pat. No. 5,313,878, issued in the name of Strait. These devices utilize mechanical misting devices or sponge type elements which provide moisture.
Some devices keep the baked goods from spoiling, but do nothing to assist with the maintenance of sufficient moisture content of the items. These devices usually do this by reducing the storage temperature of the goods. For example, the device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,627,393, issued in the name of Hickson et. al., utilizes solid carbon dioxide to reduce the storage temperature. The problem with such devices is that they do not maintain humidity in the storage compartment, and actually may further aggravate the problem by introducing a low humidity creating substance to the device.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents that read directly on the claims of the instant invention. Consequently, a need has been felt for providing a simple apparatus and method which will maintain the moisture content of baked goods.